The best thirty-one Street Fighter V players in the world - last year’s Capcom Cup Champion (MenaRD), the four Regional Finalists (NA, LATAM, EU and JP), and the top 26 points earners in the Capcom Pro Tour standings - will convene at the HyperX Esports Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada to compete for this year’s Cup and a staggering prize pool of approximately $400,000, which players can still contribute to by purchasing the CPT 2018 DLC via the in-game store before December 18th.

The last player who will complete the Top 32 bracket will be decided by way of a Last Chance Qualifier on Friday, December 14th. Over two-hundred formidable competitors, such as Dogura, ChrisG, Alex Myers and more, will battle through a gauntlet of high-stakes matches to earn the right to share in the glory of being counted among the best SFV competitors for the year.

Last year, Naoki “Nemo” Nemoto blasted a canyon through the first-ever LCQ bracket for Capcom Cup, and then went on to finish in third place in the finals. This year, he is counted among those already qualified for the Cup, and will be representing Team Liquid’s finest, as he and John Takeuchi were signed by the organization in March 2018 just as the CPT 2018 season kicked off.

With last year’s qualifier returning this year as a finalist, it remains anybody’s guess as to who will take the LCQ, and likewise for the Capcom Cup finals. The rise of Street Fighter V esports has seen a vicious tug of war between multiple regions, as proven by the Evolution Championship Series, which has crowned three SFV champions, each of which come from a different region. South Korea’s Infiltration took home the crown in 2016; Japan’s Tokido climbed out of Loser’s Bracket to sweep through the 2017 Grand Finals; and finally ProblemX, from the United Kingdom, brought glory to Shadaloo by dethroning Tokido just four months ago.

Similarly, the first two Capcom Cups for Street Fighter V have seen different winners from different regions. NuckleDu brought pride to the USA by winning the 2016 Cup, whereas MenaRD, from the Dominican Republic, endured a bracket reset against Tokido before snatching victory from the jaws of defeat last year. But rather than keep the winnings to himself, MenaRD put them towards further developing his region’s SFV scene in an effort to prove a point: that Latin America has its own share of talent able to compete with the best of the best.

Speaking of Latin America, misfortune befell the winner of the LATAM Regional Finals: Crossover_RD. Having qualified for this year’s Cup, he’d attempted to secure his travel visa so as to guarantee his journey to North America for the finals, only for his application to be denied. Capcom took notice of the predicament and sought to assist him, but despite their efforts, Crossover’s appeal was also denied.

As a result of this setback, Crossover has forfeited his slot to Gonzalo “Pikoro” Buleje, runner-up from the LATAM Regional Finals.

Below is a series of tweets from @CapcomFighters explaining this situation.

UPDATE: As you're aware, @Crossover_RD was denied a US visa he needed to compete at #CapcomCup2018. As soon as we found out, we worked to get him on an appeal in the hopes he would be approved. Unfortunately, he has again been denied a US visa.

The reason we chose to take a player from the Regional Finals Top 8 is because there were multiple players not qualified for the event, obviously beginning with Crossover who won the event. Since Pikoro came in second, he will secure the LATAM qualifying spot.

In addition to the finals, Capcom Cup 2018 will showcase two other special events. One such event will feature a series of exhibitions called Champions Collide, which will bring together four veterans from the classic days of Super Street Fighter II Turbo in a vicious four-man bracket: Alex Valle, John Choi, Afrolegends and Damdai. This series will precede the Top 8 finals for the Cup, taking place on December 16th.

Also, remember G’s debut trailer, which surfaced during the Evolution 2018 finals? The artists responsible for bringing you his theme, President of the World, will be present at Capcom Cup to participate in live performances! The artists in attendance will be Del the Funky Homosapien, Dan the Automator, and Domino!

Who says one can’t enjoy themselves during the finale to an incredibly grueling year for our competitors?

The event as a whole will be live-streamed via Capcom’s social media. Follow @CapcomFighters on Twitter for all updates pertaining to Capcom Cup.

About Capcom Cup: Founded by Capcom in 2014, the company partnered with a wildly popular live-streaming platform to deliver an organized series of events leading up to the Capcom Cup, on an annual basis. Qualifier points and prize pools would be distributed through a series of qualifiers leading up to the finale of each year, which would typically occur at the West Coast.

The CPT circuit in 2014 first used the later versions of Super Street Fighter IV: Arcade Edition before gradually transitioning into its final incarnation, Ultra Street Fighter IV. Then in 2016, Street Fighter V became the circuit’s flagship title, and Capcom is preparing to close off its third chapter at the Las Vegas Esports Arena.

Over the years, the Capcom Pro Tour gradually expanded upon its system to allow for more opportunities for players located in vastly different regions. A series of qualifiers and regional finals now occur in North America, Latin America, Europe and Asia, and competitors can also partake in online ranking events to earn themselves CPT points which will improve their standings in the CPT leaderboards.

Recognized as one of the most well-built collaborations between developer and community, the Capcom Cup symbolizes a common vision shared by Street Fighter enthusiasts worldwide: the opportunity to push themselves beyond their limits. So great was its success, that the Capcom Cup 2016 finals were given a brief time slot on the ESPN2 TV network, although similar arrangements were not made for its successor in 2017. In addition, both EVO 2016 and EVO 2017, the biggest keystone event in the Capcom Pro Tour next to the Cup itself, were also broadcast live via ESPN2 and Disney XD.

JagoBlake, the author of this article, is an esports enthusiast who just so happens to have a way with words. Whenever he is not scouring the Internet in pursuit of breaking news, he's investing time into his favorite fighting games so as not to appear inadequate in the face of competition. To support his work, follow him on Twitter - @xJagoBlake.

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